Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said higher war spending would be financed through budget cutbacks and increased revenues rather than a wider deficit, the outline of a long-delayed fiscal plan.

The target fiscal gap for 2025 will be reduced to 4% of gross domestic product, requiring budgetary adjustments of at least 35 billion shekels ($9.5 billion), Smotrich said at a press conference in Jerusalem Tuesday. He declined to elaborate, saying he still needs to present his plans to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other ministers.

What’s going on here?

Bajaj Housing Finance is eyeing a whopping $6.94 billion valuation through its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) set to launch on September 9.

What does this mean?

This IPO aims to raise $782 million via a price band of 66-70 rupees per share. Running from September 9 to 11, it marks one of India’s biggest IPOs this year, right behind Ola Electric Mobility and Bharti Hexacom. Bajaj Housing Finance plans to issue new shares worth up to 35.60 billion rupees to bolster its capital base while Bajaj Finance will sell shares worth up to 30 billion rupees. As of August 28, over 200 companies have cumulatively raised $7.11 billion through IPOs this year, more than double last year’s figure for the same period.

Why should I care?

For markets: India’s IPO wave continues.

India’s IPO market is red-hot, and Bajaj Housing Finance’s massive $6.94 billion valuation is set to keep the momentum going. With a successful IPO, it would join the ranks of Ola Electric Mobility and Bharti Hexacom. This influx of IPOs, raising a total of $7.11 billion so far this year, signals a robust investor appetite and continuing confidence in the Indian market.

The bigger picture: Regulatory nudges and robust growth.

The Reserve Bank of India compelled non-bank lenders with over 500 billion rupees in assets to list by September 2025, a regulation that helped set Bajaj Housing Finance on this IPO path. Reporting a profit after tax of 17.31 billion rupees in the fiscal year ending March 2024, up 38% year-on-year, and a 34% rise in total revenues, Bajaj’s strong financials underpin this listing, showcasing the health and growth potential of India’s housing finance industry.

The Centre for Finance, Innovation and Technology (CFIT) has formed an anti-financial crime group.

The U.K.-based group announced the effort Monday (Sept. 2), noting it had recruited several tech and finance giants to its cause, including Amazon Web Services, Mastercard, Lloyds Bank, Revolut and Santander.

Also joining the group are regulators such as the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Payment Systems Regulator (PSR), with the goal of finding new ways to protect businesses and consumers from fraud.

“Digital verification is considered a key step in mitigating economic crime,” CFIT said in a news release provided to PYMNTS. “An enhanced digital identity for businesses that can be shared and understood across institutions and sectors would help thwart fraudsters and create a more secure economy.”

The group aims to offer standardized, verified information about a business “that is interoperable with other financial systems for data cross-referencing, enhanced authenticity checks and additional fraud detection tools,” the release added. 

Meanwhile, Lloyds Bank, NatWest Bank and Monzo will work together on a proof of concept that tests the impact of a digital corporate ID, “including a reduced scope for accounts to be offered to potential criminals,” CFIT said. A report with recommendations on how British institutions could implement a digital verification solution is expected in March of next year.

In other fraud prevention news, PYMNTS spoke recently with Max Spivakovsky, senior director of strategy and operations, global payments risk management and onboarding at Galileo, about the tightrope banks walk as they provide digital services and payments choices to their end customers while protecting against scammers and cybercriminals.

He said this balancing act requires financial institutions (FIs) to take both proactive and reactive approaches, while also employing technological tools, as they defend themselves while creating a personalized, convenient customer experience.

“The legacy solutions just don’t work anymore,” he told PYMNTS. “Leveraging a single tool used to be the ‘paramount’ strategy of fraud mitigation years ago, but now it’s just not applicable. … The FIs must think about fighting fraud with a holistic perspective.”

The holistic approach can pay dividends while protecting banks from financial losses and harm to their reputation, he said.

“The client experience drives the engagement, and utilization of [banking] apps and programs,” Spivakovsky added.